Metric's new album, its second on the band's own label, is titled Synthetica. Left to right: Joshua Winstead, Emily Haines, James Shaw, Joules Scott-Key.
Metric has long been identified as an indie-rock band, but it recently embraced the "indie" part of that descriptor in a big way.
For their last album together, the band's members formed their own company — Metric Music International — to distribute the record, organize a tour and handle promotion without a label's support. The result was the biggest album of Metric's career: Fantasies sold half a million copies worldwide.
This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Scott Simon. Time for sports.
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SIMON: And Wimbledon is underway, the world's oldest, most esteemed, greenest and strawberries and creamiest tennis tournament. Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic seem set on the collision course for a semifinal. Maria Sharapova on course for a potential showdown with Kim Clijsters. Howard Bryant of ESPN.com, ESPN the magazine, and ESPN the full grain, fibrous and nutritious snack cracker on the line from the All England Club.
Of course, Egypt has a new president - an Islamist from the once-banned Muslim Brotherhood. Mohamed Morsi took the oath of office in Cairo today, a day after appearing at Tahrir Square to proclaim that the people are the real source of power, not the generals and the supreme military council. NPR's Peter Kenyon reports from Cairo that despite the swearing-in ceremony, Mr. Morsi may not have really taken hold of the reins of power.
PRESIDENT MOHAMED MORSI: (Foreign language spoken)
Firefighters are slowly gaining ground on the Waldo Canyon fire in Colorado. It's scorched about 17,000 acres and believed to have claimed two lives.
More than 300 homes have burned. There's been a lot of talk about how many houses were lost in the fire, but Colorado Springs Fire Chief Rich Brown wants you to know there's a flip side to that: He says crews worked hard to minimize damage.
The heat and drought that brought much of Colorado Springs into danger has also hit the Midwest. Temperatures broke 100 degrees in the Great Plains, and the heat and the lack of rain is endangering what was expected to be a bumper crop of corn. Tim Lenz is a farmer near the town of Strasburg in south central Illinois, where he grows corn and soybeans. Mr. Lenz, thanks for being with us.
TIM LENZ: Thank you.
SIMON: What's it been like there for the past couple of weeks?
For more than 30 years, Richard Miles and Reg Mead scoured the fields of their native Jersey with metal detectors, hoping to one day come across an ancient coin or two. Earlier this week, the detector beeped and they found the world's largest-ever stash of Celtic coins. Host Scott Simon speaks with Reg Mead about their find.
This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Scott Simon. President Obama told residents of Colorado yesterday that the country has their back. The president visited an evacuation center and met with some of the firefighters who have been battling the deadly Waldo Canyon fire near Colorado Springs.
Facing an unexpected ruling validating the Affordable Care Act, Republicans in Congress promised to redouble efforts to repeal it, starting with another vote in the House early next month. Host Scott Simon talks with NPR's David Welna to explain the battle ahead.
A spectator cools off with a spray mist during first round play Friday at the AT&T National at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Md.
Credit Jim Mone / AP
Chicago White Sox' Eduardo Escobar closes his eyes as trainer Herm Schneider sprays him with cool water during a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
Credit Sitthixay Ditthavong / AP
From left, construction workers Santiago Gomez, Jorge Moreno and Abel Lozano take a break from the extreme heat during a road construction project in downtown Chicago, Thursday. Little relief from the heat is expected in the next few days.
Credit Nam Y. Huh / AP
Jason Gerald (left) and Adam Hoffman jump into the Lake Michigan at Montrose Beach in Chicago on Thursday.
Credit Jim Schulz / AP
In this photo provided by the Chicago Zoological Society, Honey, a 2-year-old American Guinea hog at the Brookfield Zoo in Brookfield, Ill., cools off.
Credit Gerry Broome / AP
Doug Jones, owner of Piedmont Biofarm in Pittsboro, N.C., waters vegetables Friday as temperatures in the South soar. Triple-digit temperatures are expected for several days in North Carolina.
Credit Bruce Schreiner / AP
Children cool off from the intense heat at a waterfront park in downtown Louisville, Ky., on Friday.
Credit Chuck Burton / AP
Aletta, a rough-legged hawk, flaps her wings as she gets a cooling shower from a hose at the Carolina Raptor Center in Charlotte, N.C., on Friday.
Credit Gerry Broome / AP
Doug Jones, owner of Piedmont Biofarm in Pittsboro, N.C., waters vegetables as temperatures in the South soar, Friday, June 29. Triple-digit temperatures are expected for several days in North Carolina.
It's been hot. Like sweat-rolling, thirst-inducing, hack-a-fire-hydrant hot. The heat cooked up storms that lashed the Eastern U.S. overnight, and more than 2 million homes lost power.
College students surrounded President Obama earlier this month when he called on Congress to stop student loan interest rates from doubling. Congress agreed on a deal to prevent the hike on Friday.
It came down to the wire, but finally, Republicans and Democrats agreed on a deal that keeps the interest rate on government-backed student loans from doubling. It will save the average borrower about $1,000 a year, but the compromise is likely to cost students a lot more than that over the long term.
The agreement that lawmakers passed Friday will keep interest rates at 3.4 percent for another year. Anthony DeLaRosa, a 23-year-old University of Colorado graduate, says it's a big victory.
A man walks past a campaign sign for Enrique Pena Nieto, of the opposition Institutional Revolutionary Party. Mexicans vote for their next president on Sunday.
Credit Alfredo Estrella / AFP/Getty Images
Mexican presidential candidate Enrique Pena Nieto is heavily favored in Sunday's election.
As Mexicans prepare to elect a new president Sunday, the clear front-runner is Enrique Pena Nieto, who is seeking to return his PRI party to power after 12 years.
The PRI, or Institutional Revolutionary Party, ruled Mexico for more than 70 years before being ousted in 2000. Most polls show Pena Nieto with a comfortable double-digit lead in the race.
If you watch the action at Wimbledon this weekend, you'll see the camera closely tracking Serena Williams and David Ferrer.
But you'll also notice smaller, less celebrated figures darting on and off the court. Their training may not be as rigorous as the tennis pros', but it's plenty demanding.
Fair and accurate calls from the chair umpire are critical to the smooth running of Wimbledon. So, too, are the six young girls and boys flying around each court.
